Series Split Via Knockout Round in Ogden

On Saturday night, in game 5 of the Raptors vs Chukars series, the Raptors had it all working in a statement bounce-back win, after taking a 7-0 shutout loss the night before. The hit parade was out and about right from the start with the Raptors loading the bases up in the 1st inning. While Dusty Baird did manage to get out of the jam with Rafael Narea searing a ball right at Chukars 2nd baseman Tyler Wyatt, this inning would end up being a precursor to the type of offensive production we would see from the Raptors for the rest of the game. In the very next inning, Brian Dansereau launched a 2-run shot to make up for those runners left on base in the 1st, and to get his club on the board early. The Raptors would tally 2 more runs in the 3rd courtesy of a Rafael Narea solo homer, and a Dakota Conners bases-loaded walk. They scored in 4 straight innings from the 2nd through the 5th, with a bit of base running magic sprinkled in from a delayed double steal that stole a run in the 4th inning. The run production coupled with a great starting bid by Pablo Arevalo, turned out to be an unbeatable recipe for the Raptors as they ran away with this one, leading 7-2 in the later innings. They put 3 more runs on the board in the bottom of the 8th inning, topped off by a Dakota Conners sac fly to round out a 3-RBI day at the plate. In total, the Raptors slashed 15 hits, with 7 RBIs, on 10 runs, led by Conners 4 for 4 day, with 2 SBs, and 1 BB at the plate. An amazing offensive showing for the Raptors in Game 5, comped with great pitching from their starter and relievers allowed them to dominate, and take this one without any doubts in the process. 

Following up their 10-2 win in Game 5, the Raptors were seeking a series win to put team morale at a high before their 3-game road trip back to Boise. Game 6 showed a well-rounded performance from the Chukars and Raptors as they battled to take the final game in the series. It was a battle of offensive explosions from both sides and was arguably the most competitive matchup of the season to this point. Throughout most of the game the Raptors were playing from behind, however, they didn’t let the deficits deter them as they clawed their way back and evened up the score twice. The lineup was firing on all cylinders as yet again, they recorded double-digit hits; Not only were the hits coming in bunches but they also came in vital situational that changed the outcome of the game. While down 6-3, Reese Alexiades delivered a 2-run dinger and later, a game-tying double in the 3rd and 5th innings to knot the game up at 6. Then, after the team fell behind by 2 more runs, Sal Gozzo came up huge in the bottom half of the 9th to even the game up after delivering a 2-out, 2-run single up the middle with the bases loaded, sending both of these teams to their first Knockout Round of the 2023 season. 3,896 of the Raptors faithful in attendance got more than they bargained for as the Home-Run contest kicked off with Damian Henderson raking for the Raptors, and Chris Monroe slugging for the Chukars. They would both tee off on 3 balls before recording their 5 outs, which sent the contest into round 2. The Chukars sent Karl Koerper out to swing in round 2, and the Raptors delegated the big bat of Logan Williams to take their cuts. Similar to the round 1 result, they both managed to mash 2 homers, which would send it into the 3rd and final round of the knockout contest. Koerper and Williams stepped up to the plate one final time for their sides in round 3 and after an impressive display of power from Karl Koerper, the Chukars got the edge they needed to take game 6 and even the series up at 3 games a piece. While the Raptors didn’t end up taking the win in this one, it was about as solid of a performance as possible in a losing effort as they competed all the way to the last pitch. Despite the great offensive showing by the Raptors, they lost this one by a hair length, and look to bounce back into the win column on the road tonight at 7:05 against the 3rd-place Boise Hawks.